The Hobbyist Musician’s Audio Interface: Behringer U-PHORIA UMC202HD
When it comes to music enthusiasts, the sheer price point of equipment can be a blunder to progress to the next stages of our craft. One of the essentials and barriers to cross is an audio interface.
For recording instrumentals or vocals with a microphone, an audio interface can help you get that crisp quality. However, it comes with a hefty price tag, even for beginner equipment.
But here's Behringer's U-PHORIA UMC202HD – priced at around USD 80 to 120 on Amazon, or around BDT 8,000/- if you buy it directly from their Shanghai showroom.
Pros
It has two channels for simultaneous dual recordings and within the interface, there are controls for each of the two channels that let you switch between line and instrumental level and there's even a light indicator for when the signal is connected and another for when the signal is clipping. There is, of course, 48V phantom power which allows you to power condenser microphones through the interface directly. The UMC202HD is a USB interface so it's a great option for home studios as you can plug it to your PC and it's compatible with popular software such as Pro Tools, Ableton Live and Cubase. The most advertised aspect of this interface; the 24-bit/192kHz HD resolution audio quality gives your audio a lot of accuracy and detail which is hard to get at this price point. The MIDAS preamplifiers keep the noise low up to 60% and pretty usable up to 85% gain. The body of the interface is made of metal and feels sturdy so if used well, it could last a long time.
Cons
The most significant issues are the lack of MIDI compatibility and not having the option to switch between mono and stereo monitoring, only being stuck with a stereo output signal. For producers, no MIDI support is like a guitar without strings and many singers prefer to hear a mono mix of vocals and backtrack while singing. Behringer has an upgraded model that solves these problems for about 20-40 dollars more: the Behringer U-Phoria UMC204HD which has a mix-panel along with one MIDI I/O. Ultimately, the biggest drawback to purchasing this interface is the existence of its cooler and flashier, big brother.
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